BLOCK EAGER TO CONTINUE GOOD FORM AT #CANADARX

America’s Ken Block has qualified for the semi-finals at every FIA World Rallycross Championship event so far in 2017, and starts the race closest to his Park City home this weekend in Canada.

Twelve months ago, Block was set to qualify for the final at Trois-Rivieres but hit a barrier in his semi-final. “I made a small mistake, there were some marbles on the exit of the corner and I tightened up the line, but hit the barrier. It was unfortunate, at that time I was in a position to qualify for the final and I ended up setting one of the fastest laps of the weekend. Then I put myself out doing something kinda stupid, but that’s racing,” he explained. “I think the track here is quite fun good, there are a few things I hope they have improved on from last year, but it’s a good high speed with a long straight, some good corners and good gravel.”

The American driver is pleased to be racing closer to him this weekend. “I spend so much of the year flying backwards and forwards to Europe that jetlag is a constant thing. It does take a toll on you by the end of the year, so it’s nice to come here, it’s only a two hour time difference from home.”

Since its debut in 2016, the Hoonigan Racing Division team has worked hard to make the Ford Focus RS RX suit Block’s driving style, and he is targeting the podium in the second half of 2017. “We’ve done a lot of work on the setup to get the car to work better for me, I’m more confident with it now but we still have quite a long way to go. I feel like we’re very close to where we need to be, but it’s the last few tenths that are the hardest to achieve. The team has worked really hard and we’ve taken a big leap from last year. Hopefully we can continue that development and I can start getting closer to being on the podium. Developing the Focus has been a bit of a longer road than we expected, but it’s really starting to get there.”